Complicate it Up
by MusicUnwritten
Summary: Rocky accidentally vents to Mrs. Nesbitt, whom she didn't know was a nanny cam. She's terrified that CeCe will find out her secret, but what she expects is nothing compared to what actually happens. ReCe! Rated T for later.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rocky, CeCe, Shake it Up! or any other characters that may appear in this fanfiction. I do however own the right to using canon things to my advantage in writing :D**

**If you don't like ReCe, then don't complain to me; complain to the writers of Shake it Up! for making Rocky and CeCe too compatible to resist.**

* * *

I never thought that I would admit anything to anyone. Not even to myself. But the day that I actually decided to say it, to _vocalize_ it, turned out to be the day that I had ruined my life.

I had been at CeCe's apartment, sitting on her bed and waiting for her to get back from an errand her mom had told her to run. I would have been waiting about half an hour, so when I got bored I had begun to riffle through the pile of stuffed animals on my friend's bed. I had come across a plush elephant and sat it in my lap, petting its false fur.

"You're cute," I said to the elephant. It was childish to be talking to a doll, I know, but I was bored and nobody was watching me. "You wouldn't mind if I told you a secret, would you?"

What came out of my mouth then was a torrent of information nobody should ever know. However, it had felt better to get it off of my chest, even to a stuffed elephant, and I thought I had done a good thing for myself. That is, until CeCe came back and told me about a video that our brothers had made of our embarrassments on camera and proposed a plan to get back at them.

It involved using the elephant as a hidden camera. The elephant was _already_ a hidden camera.

And I had just told it my deepest secret.

* * *

**Yay for short prologues! Anyone have any ideas about Rocky's secret? Well, it's probably pretty obvious, but it works xD**

**And for anyone reading Secreta Animas, I promise I'll try to keep writing that for you. For some reason I just can't get back into it D:**


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh, hey Rocky! How long have you been waiting here?" The voice was light and playful, belonging to none other than CeCe Jones herself.

I sat up from where I had been lying on her bed and smiled. "Not too long. Flynn said you were just out for a little while to go shopping for your mom. What was she having you do?"

"Nothing important," CeCe said. She skipped over and threw herself down beside me on the bed. "Just had to get something and run it over to Jeremy's. And I found out that our brothers are exploiting us," she added casually.

I was about to respond, but then I felt CeCe lean into me, and butterflies filled my stomach at the warmth produced by her body. I tried to still my racing heart, but it was pointless. Every time CeCe gets that close to me, I freak out. It had been like that for weeks, but I didn't know how to stop it and I didn't know how to stop this…crush.

It had taken that long for me just to admit it to myself. It was the scariest feeling, to know that you liked your best friend more than you should, especially when she's the same gender as you. Because as open-minded as I am, my parents wouldn't think the same way and I didn't even know CeCe's opinion on it. I couldn't ruin the friendship we had worked so long and hard on.

"Oh—um, what do you mean?" I finally managed to stutter, snapping out of my reverie.

"Come on Rocky, keep up! It's Ty and Flynn," CeCe repeated, standing up again. "They made a video of us farting and sneezing on camera and people are paying to watch it. I caught them at Crusty's."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," I murmured. "Well, if anyone can get them back, it's us. Right?"

CeCe snorted. "Of course!" She reached down and took the stuffed elephant I'd been talking to earlier into her hands, a sly grin forming on her face. "And I've already got a plan," she continued, wiggling the elephant around suggestively.

I pulled a face and giggled. "What, are we going to pelt them with your dolls?"

"No, silly goose!" CeCe chirped. She sure was in a good mood, considering. I would be lying if I said I didn't love it. "This," she continued, holding the elephant up, "is Mrs. Nesbitt. She's a nanny cam; she records _everything._ If I leave her out on the dining room table with my tea set and a few other dolls, I know Flynn won't be able to resist giving a tea party a whirl. And if I do it tonight, when Ty's 'babysitting' him," she paused to wink at me and I felt my cheeks grow fractionally warmer, "then I can probably catch both of them having a tea part. On camera. With this." She kissed Mrs. Nesbitt's trunk fondly.

It was then that I realized exactly what CeCe had just proposed.

"Oh…you know what? Why don't we just stick some peanut butter in their underwear or something?" I asked nervously. CeCe couldn't look at the footage on that camera, or my life would be ruined, mostly by the fact that she wouldn't want to be my friend anymore or at the very least things would be too awkward.

"Ew, I don't want to touch our brothers' underwear; that's just disgusting."

Well, so much for keeping her away from the stupid elephant. "Umm…okay. Can I set it up then?" I asked.

CeCe raised one eyebrow, and I could tell she knew something fishy was going on. "If you wanna…" She paused, then kept talking. "Rocky, is there something you want to tell me?" she asked. My breath hitched.

"Um, no, nothing at all!" I lied, giving a little giggle that probably made me sound more insane than believable. Of course, I'm a horrible liar and I don't think anything will ever change that.

"Okay…well, I'll take your word on that," CeCe replied, unconvinced. She left the subject alone after that, though.

"Hey, can I spend the night here?" I asked quickly. "Since, you know, Ty'll be here and my parents are going out; I'd be all alone."

"Yeah, of course!" CeCe laughed. A smile involuntarily formed on my face. "You should know by now that you don't even have to ask." She was right, and I was letting paranoia get the best of me. "Oh—but no Tinka and Dina this time," she tacked on, only adding to my fond smile.

Tonight could actually be fun. There was just one thing I had to remember—once CeCe was asleep, I'd have to sneak Mrs. Nesbitt away and find a way to delete the footage on her camera. It couldn't be that hard.

* * *

**Mm, still rather short, but I'm really tired so I'm stopping here O: I'm not sure I'm doing this right; I've missed a lot of episodes and only just got into this show…like, seriously. I used to hate it. I'll learn though :3**


	3. Chapter 3

"Okay Rocky, ready for movies?" CeCe asked, pulling me into her living room. "They're different from what we normally watch, but maybe we'll like them. I borrowed them from Jeremy's house."

"'Borrowed'?" I repeated, raising one eyebrow. CeCe looked at me incredulously.

"Hey! I just…borrowed them _without_ him knowing! I'll take them back; it's still borrowing," she argued. It wasn't very convincing, but I'd let her get away with it.

"Okay, okay, but only because you're so cu—because…because you have …cucumbers." Oh my goodness, did that really just come out of my mouth? "Um…and…I like cucumbers. So…I'm just gonna go get a cucumber now…while you…set up the movie."

I hesitated while CeCe stared at me like I was absolutely insane, then I fled to the kitchen. I bit my tongue hard, trying not to look too horrified, as I opened the fridge and, thankfully, found a cucumber.

I had been so paranoid the entire night for no reason. Every time I did or said anything I immediately thought it over, terrified that I had let something slip. I never had, until then. I'm sure it was exactly because of that paranoia, and that it probably wouldn't have happened had I relaxed some. But who could blame me? _If _CeCe was going to find out about my feelings for her, then it certainly wouldn't be from her stuffed animal.

At least during a movie I'd be forced to shut up. That's a plus.

I quickly composed myself and strode back into the living room, where CeCe was already sitting comfortably on the couch. "Dj'ya find your cucumber?" she asked, grinning lightly.

"Mhm." I plopped down beside her and burrowed into the couch, pretending nothing weird had just happened. I was actually doing a pretty good job of not panicking until I turned my eyes to the screen and froze.

The title screen of the movie CeCe had put in depicted two pretty women cuddling on a park bench in a rather romantic way. No, it was unmistakable; the little blonde was _kissing_ the other woman's hand like a guy would his girlfriend.

My mind went into hyperdrive then. Why would CeCe have taken a movie about lesbians from Jeremy's house? Was it actually from Jeremy's house? Did she know about my crush on her? Was she planning on humiliating me and then dumping me as a friend?

"Rocks…are you all right?" CeCe asked, and I felt her hand on my shoulder, shaking me. "You just like…froze and zoned out."

"Huh?" I wrenched my eyes away from the couple on the screen and found CeCe's shining brown eyes right up in my face. "Oh…" Oh. How stupid could I get? Of course none of that crap was true; CeCe didn't have any reason to lie to me and now she was worried because I had zoned out for a minute. "Yeah…I'm fine," I answered, giving her an actual real smile.

She smiled back, then got comfortable again before pointing the remote at the television to play the movie. "Good. I can't have my best friend going awol on me," she laughed.

When the movie started I zoned out again, faintly laughing whenever I heard CeCe doing it, but really not paying any attention at all. Before I even noticed what was happening, I was drunkenly leaning against the arm of the couch, asleep.

I woke up to the door opening. I blinked my eyes open, suppressing a huge yawn that was trying to rip through me, and saw Ms. Jones walking into the room.

"Oh, good morning, Rocky," she said softly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. I guess you two had a pretty busy night," she added, chuckling, before going down the hallway, presumably to find Flynn and Ty.

I tried to sit up, but there was something weighing me down. I couldn't get _up_. A lock of orange hair fell into my face and I realized that CeCe was on top of me, still asleep. CeCe.

Oh my gosh.

I had completely forgotten about Mrs. Nesbitt. She would still be sitting on the dining room table with the other dolls, because I forgot to get her and fix up the camera. I'd fallen asleep and I hadn't _done_ it. My life is _over_. CeCe was going to find my confession, and things would be awkward, and we'd never be able to hang out alone anymore. Or at all, depending on how CeCe would feel about the whole thing.

But, despite the haunting terror I had felt last night and this morning's realization, I was surprisingly calm. If there was nothing I could do to fix what I'd screwed up, then there was no point in worrying about it.

I gently shook CeCe, nudging her into wakefulness while still trying to wake up all the way myself. "Hey, it's like noon," I murmured to her. "We've slept half the day away."

"I don't wanna get up," CeCe complained, but compliantly slid off of my abdomen and onto the other side of the couch. "Oh…sorry if I was crushing you."

"Oh, that's okay," I replied as coolly as I could, still sleepily draped over the arm of the couch. I had a headache. "Sometimes we can't help crushing on people."

"Rocky, darling?" CeCe was in front of me now, petting my hair like a cat's. "I think you had a bad cucumber."

Oh, kill me now. Somebody needs to tape my mouth shut early in the morning or something, because my brain obviously doesn't want to work. "Oh…sorry. I don't even know what I'm saying." I stood up and ran a hand through my hair, my fingers catching on a bunch of tangles. I wrinkled my nose. "Okay…I need to go take a shower. I'll be back in twenty," I called over my shoulder as I climbed out of the window and onto the fire escape.

"Alright," CeCe replied. "See ya then."

* * *

**Haha, these chapters are slowly getting longer and longer. Maybe one day you'll get a decent-length one! Sorry it took a little while; I had a minor case of writer's block. But I think it's fixed for now :3**


	4. Chapter 4

I combed my wet hair back, not bothering to style it because I knew I'd just be hanging out at CeCe's all day. I felt slightly better after the shower and I decided I'd be an optimist for once. I'd transfer the tape of Ty and Flynn out of Mrs. Nesbitt (yeah, we actually did catch them playing with the dolls at one point) and erase the rest at the same time. Nothing could go wrong; it was fool-proof.

"Hey CeCe, you ready to blackmail our brothers?" I chirped as I slid through her window and back into her living room. She was sitting on the couch again, so her back was to me. "CeCe?" I repeated when she didn't answer.

"Yeah…I have the tape ready," she responded. She sounded…slightly depressed. And she had the tape ready. Dear lord, what is wrong with my planning? Every single one of my ideas goes bad. I'll have to deal with the awkwardness now, I suppose. "It's, uh, it's already in the T.V.," she added. "We'll just catch them on their way out."

"…Okay," I said, circling around to sit on the couch beside CeCe. "So…what's been happening?" I asked hesitantly.

That seemed to break whatever ice there was, and CeCe laughed. "Rocky, you haven't been gone for that long! It's not like we haven't seen each other in days or anything; nothing's happened since you left."

It sounded like she was telling the truth. I smiled involuntarily. CeCe must not have gone that far into the camera's history. Could I possibly have gotten that lucky? Maybe I could just go on pretending everything was normal, and CeCe would never know the difference. The thought actually made me a tiny bit sad, 'cause I'd always wonder whether CeCe would try to return my feelings if she knew, but it was better this way. This was what I'd wanted since I found out that stupid elephant was a camera.

Just then, the boys walked into the living room. "Hey, guys! We heard that you were making a little money off of our humiliation," I said before they could leave again.

"That's not true!" Ty protested.

"Yeah, we're making a lot of money off of your humiliation," Flynn finished, looking smug while he laughed and fist-bumped Ty.

"Well, I hope you're up for a little friendly competition," CeCe said, "because we made a video of our own!"

"W-what are you talking about?"

"Talking about the fact that you didn't know Mrs. Nesbitt is also…a nanny cam," she said, and I nodded, trying to play it cool. "Watch and learn, boys."

I clicked the television on and there were our brothers, playing tea with CeCe's stuffed animals. It was pretty darn funny even the second time around. After the guys watched a good portion of it, we all agreed to get rid of both videos. Then, the boys left and Ms. Jones went out again, leaving CeCe and I by ourselves.

"So, CeCe, do ya wanna go grab some pizza for lunch?" I asked, my mood lightened. "I think Crusty's is having a half-off thing today—"

"No, I don't want to 'grab some pizza' with you," CeCe interrupted, looking frazzled and angry again.

"Oh, you're not in the mood for pizza, okay," I said, knowing perfectly well what was coming but pretending it wouldn't happen. Because maybe if I pretended hard enough, it would never come. "How about burgers?"

"Rocky, I don't want to grab _anything_ with you," CeCe snapped. "And I think you know why."

"No, CeCe, I _don't_ know why!" I argued. "I don't know why it's such a big _deal_. I knew this would happen if I told you. That's why I told your dang elephant, but _you_ never told me it was a camera!"

"Rocky?" CeCe's voice was gentle, and I thought maybe she would have thought it over. But the blood drained from my face when I heard her next words. "Go away."

"But, CeCe, I—" Tears began to form in my eyes. I thought things would be awkward between us if CeCe had found out, but I never thought she'd react this way.

"I don't want to hear it. Leave me alone."

"Please, just let me explain!" I begged. "I can…I can forget all about this crush, I swear. I don't want to ruin our friendship, I…" I could tell CeCe wasn't going to change her mind about this.

"How many times do I have to say it?" CeCe demanded. "Get. _Out!_"

I fled out of the front door, not bothering to try to go through the fire escape. The tears were pouring down my face, blinding me. I knew it. I knew deep down that CeCe would hate me for liking her, and I just had to go say it out loud. It never would have helped anything anyway. Why had I done it? To make it seem not as bad as it was? So much for that.

I hadn't been watching where I was going and I ran straight into somebody on the stairs. "Whoa, hey, watch whe—Rocky? What's wrong?"

It was Ty; Flynn was behind him. "I don't wanna talk about it," I murmured, and continued up the stairs. It seemed like it took decades to get up that one staircase and into my own apartment where I could cry without anyone seeing me. I was totally out of it; I didn't even notice that Ty didn't follow me or that there was barely-audible yelling coming from the floor below me.

* * *

"Okay, can you go to your room for a little while, lil' dude?" Ty asked, and Flynn shrugged before heading toward his room. He could sense the agitation coming off of the older boy in waves and he decided he could live with being in his room for a bit.

"What the hell did you do to my sister, CeCe? She just ran into me in the stairwell, crying her eyes out."

"What did _I_ do to _her_?" CeCe exclaimed, genuinely believing she was the victim. "She kept something from me! She kept something _huge_ from me, after we'd gone so long…_swearing_ not to keep secrets from each other, to tell each other _everything_. I haven't kept a single thing from her since she found out about my dyslexia. I trusted her."

CeCe was about to cry, as well. Everyone always thought she was pretty tough, but inside she was a huge ball of sensitivity. She had trust issues, and she hadn't expected her best friend to be the one to tear down her trust after building it up for so long.

Ty shrank down, a lot of his initial anger leaving him. He hadn't meant to make CeCe cry, but he was still mad at her for upsetting Rocky. "What could she possibly have kept from you to hurt you so badly?" he asked. It had to have been a mistake; Rocky would never purposely do something like that.

CeCe hung her head. "She likes me. As…more than a friend."

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**Ooh, what's Ty going to think of this? I stopped mainly because it's time for me to go to bed and if I didn't update now it would be another day until I could. So…enjoy! And thanks for all of the reviews, guys :3**


	5. Chapter 5

"She _what?_" Ty exclaimed, taken aback. "You can't be serious!"

"Oh, I'm serious," CeCe assured him.

Ty thought for a moment. "You can't tell anyone," he ordered. "If our parents find out…well, let's just say our parents _can't_ find out. Do you understand? Because if they find out, I'll know who told them and I _will_ hurt you when Rocky gets in trouble."

"Geez, Ty, do you really think I'd tell people?" CeCe asked, appalled. "I'm mad at her, but not _that_ mad. I…I'm still her friend. I wouldn't ruin her life like that."

"Oh, really?" Ty's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "I totally got that impression from the way she was sobbing and running away from here." He paused. "If you really still want to be her friend, then you'd better actually _be_ one. Go up there and tell her that. She's heartbroken, CeCe."

CeCe hesitated as it dawned on her just how stupid and not understanding she'd been. She was good at keeping a grudge, but if Rocky needed her…as a friend…

"Okay," she agreed. "Yeah, you're right, Ty. I need to go fix this. I'll go talk to her right now." She paused in the doorway. "And Ty? Thanks." CeCe whipped away into the hallway.

* * *

I had crawled under my covers after the light from my window had proven to be too much for me to handle. I had a headache, but I couldn't tell whether it was from the harsh light or from the crying.

Suddenly, I heard a soft knock at my bedroom door. I was tempted to ignore it, but I would get into a load of trouble if it was my father, so I said, "Who is it?"

I didn't get an answer, but there was a gentle creak as the door swung open. "It's…me." I froze. Had CeCe come here to further taunt me about my feelings? I was already beating myself up enough over what I'd done; she didn't need to make it worse by rubbing in her hatred for me.

But that couldn't be right. CeCe sounded apologetic, almost sad. I remained silent, not knowing what to say.

"Listen, Rocky," she said, and I felt her hand on my shoulder, separated only by my comforter. She sighed sadly and I uncovered my head so I could see her. "I'm really sorry about what happened. I'm so, so sorry. I overreacted and that was a horrible thing to do."

"Ya think?" I interjected, pulling myself up into a sitting position. "CeCe, I love you. I'll admit that. But…if it really makes you that uncomfortable, I'll just get out of your hair. You don't need to worry about me anymore," I finished, and turned my head to the side. I couldn't bear to look CeCe in the eye.

"Wait…you think I'm mad because you _like_ me?" she asked. I quickly looked back up at her, and she looked just as confused as I felt.

"You…you _aren't?_ Then why are you so mad at me? I don't…I don't understand. Did I miss something?"

"Rocks…I was mad because you didn't tell me after we'd promised to share everything with each other. It sort of broke my trust…" CeCe was looking really guilty now. "I'm so sorry I let that get to me; you didn't deserve a single thing that I said to you."

I pulled CeCe into a warm hug. "No, _I'm_ sorry. I should have just told you. I was just so scared that _this_ would happen, that you'd get mad at me. Um…will…will you still be my friend?"

We sat in silence for a moment, then CeCe said, "No."

I let out the breath that I didn't realize I'd been holding. "Oh…okay…" I murmured.

"I won't be your friend, because I'm your _best_friend. And I'm never going to forget that again. But…"

"Aw, CeCe, you're blushing!" I said happily, glad to see my friend acting more herself. "Wait, 'but' what?"

"But I don't want to go out with you…I just don't like you that way. I'm sorry." And she really sounded genuinely sorry. I shrugged, still smiling.

"Don't apologize. I was pretty sure you wouldn't have liked me back; I'm just glad everything can go back to normal. It actually feels really good for you to know it now; I've been stressing over whether or not I should tell you for weeks. And then when I figured out that Mrs. Nesbitt was a camera I kind of freaked out."

I look of understanding came over CeCe. "Ah…'Only because you're so _cute_'," she said, and it was my turn to blush. "I knew there was something weird about that cucumber comment last night." She laughed good-naturedly and I couldn't help but to join in.

"Hey, I was nervous!" I exclaimed. "Can you blame me?"

CeCe shook her head, smiling. "You're such a weirdo," she teased. "Hey…how about we go get that pizza? I'm starving."

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**Okay, a little shorter this time, sorry. For some reason this was hard to write :P Well, Rocky and CeCe made up! But CeCe doesn't like Rocky back :( Don't worry though; ReCe will happen :D**

**Edit: Fixed a typo.  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**CeCe's P.O.V.**

I was beyond glad that Rocky had accepted my apology; I still couldn't believe I had acted the way I had toward her earlier. She was probably way better off without me, but she didn't think so, so I figured I'd stick around and fill the same role I had been since we'd met. I would never hurt her the way I had again. I couldn't stress that enough.

Lunch wasn't as awkward as I had expected it to be. As much as I couldn't get over the fact that Rocky liked me as more than a friend, I couldn't say that it made me feel weird.

What did make me feel weird, though, was the fact that I was picking things about Rocky that I had never thought about before, like how utterly _soft_ her chocolate-colored hair is, or how cute her minuscule lisp is.

I just didn't really understand is all. I liked boys; I'd always liked boys. I'd never found a girl attractive in _that_ way, and I wasn't even sure if that was how I was seeing Rocky.

_It's just because you know she likes you,_ the little voice in the back of my head said. _It happens; someone likes you and you subconsciously try to make yourself like them back, because it's an option._

I wouldn't say that's much of a so-called 'option'. Even if I _did_ like Rocky back, which I don't, we'd have to keep it a secret from everyone, and that's definitely not a healthy relationship.

"Ce. CeCe, snap out of it."

I jerked my head up from where it had been sitting on my hand, accidentally banging my elbow on the table as I was startled out of my thoughts. "Huh? Y-what?"

"Um…you were staring at a really awkward place…" Rocky whispered, subtly gesturing toward her chest. Oh, geez, now she's going to think I'm trying to lead her on. I should really learn not to zone out when I'm around people.

"It's okay," she told me. "It happens. I—"

"_Raquel Oprah Blue!"_

Oh, goodness. Rocky's father was storming over to our table. He looked furious, absolutely livid. I didn't know what could possibly made him so mad as to practically be steaming out the ears in a public place, but I knew what was coming was not going to be pretty. Heck, it already wasn't pretty.

I stood up, really rather frightened of the man. I'd never seen him so angry, not even when he'd found out that Rocky was a dancer on Shake it Up. He walked right up to Rocky and grabbed her wrist, jerking her out of her chair.

"Raquel, I will _not_ have you hanging around people that influence you in such a way as this. What have I done wrong to make you think that it's okay to sin in this way? You're coming home with me right now." He turned and glared at me, and I swore I could see a vein popping in his head. "And Cecelia, I don't want to catch you anywhere near my daughter again. Consider this your first and last warning."

"But Mr. Blue, what are you talking about?" I questioned. "What's Rocky in trouble for, and what does it have to do with me?"

"Yeah, dad," Rocky complained, wincing a little at her father's tight grip on her wrist. "What did I do?"

Neither of us got an answer. He only glared at me one last time, then pulled Rocky out of the restaurant. I could feel eyes burning holes into me as the other customers became curious as to what had just happened. I stood frozen for a moment, then yelled, "Move on people, nothin' to see here! Keep eating your dang pizza!"

**Rocky's P.O.V**

"Raquel, I am ashamed of you," my dad said as he paced back and forth in front of me, arms tensely crossed over his chest. I sat on a dining room chair, feeling as though I'd been stripped in front of an audience.

My father had found out about my crush on CeCe.

How did he find out? I have no idea. The only person that knew was CeCe, and she would never tell anybody. I know she can have anger issues sometimes, but she wouldn't get me into trouble. I know that; she's loyal. But once I did find out how my dad had found out, somebody was getting their face kicked in.

"Dad, it's not my fault," I argued defensively. "It's not hers, either. She doesn't even like me back," I said with a hint of sadness in my tone. "Look, I know this is all against your 'Christian ethics', but I can't help how I feel toward CeCe."

"Is that so?" he asked, but not in the 'oh, I get it' way. More like the 'I consider that backtalk and I'll ground your ass' way. "Then I guess we'll have to fix that. There are plenty of good therapists all around Chicago; I'm sure at least one of them can cure you."

"Dad, I don't need a _cure_," I gasped, appalled. "You're kidding, right? You think I need to be cured of love? And what happens when I _can't_ be cured, and I just keep on loving CeCe? Is love such a bad thing in any way?"

My father pinched the bridge of his nose with two fingers as if trying to relieve a headache. "Raquel, I've had enough of this kind of behavior. I don't know where you learned to act like this, but I refuse to let you do it in my house. Go to your room and stay there. I can't stand seeing you right now."

I paused, unsure of whether or not he actually meant it. But in that moment's hesitation he looked back up at me and yelled, _"Now!"_, and I scurried off to my room.

Surprisingly, I hadn't cried up until that point. My father hated me now, I wasn't allowed to see CeCe, and I'd probably never be able to be around girls again. But the realization of that second point finally hit home and I collapsed onto my bed, sobbing into my pillow the way I had been earlier that day.

I felt utter sorrow, and anger, and despair. But the one thing that kept shoving its way into my mind was _who the hell told him._

* * *

***Gasp* How in the world did Rocky's dad find out!? Sorry it took a little while, guys. I'm probably going to be updating a little slower because I actually have work in class now (gasp, shocker!) and I'll have to start staying after school soon for theatre arts. But I'll still try to update as often as possible :)**


	7. Chapter 7

I was so, so worried about Rocky. After her father had taken her out of the restaurant earlier, she hadn't contacted me in any way to tell me what was going on. I'd simply left the pizzeria and come back home, and had been sitting on my bed for hours doing nothing but waiting for a message of any kind from Rocky.

After ten o'clock came and went, I had given up hope and decided to go to bed. After all, the next day was Monday and even if Mr. Blue wouldn't let me go over to their house, he couldn't keep Rocky and I away from each other at school. I'd find out what went down tomorrow morning, and hopefully it wasn't too bad. But I still wanted to know what I possibly could have done to make Rocky's dad so mad at us. 'Us' being the operative word.

I tried, but it was very hard to sleep. My pillow felt more like a rock than anything, and the thoughts churning in my head weren't helping me. However, I eventually felt myself fade into a slumber, still thinking about Rocky and carrying her into my dreams.

"_CeCe!"_

_The voice that screamed my name was urgent, terrified, filled with pain…familiar. It was Rocky. I didn't know where she was or what was happening to her, but the pain I could tell she was feeling was almost tangible._

"_Rocky? Where are you?" I called. Everything was black. So much black. I couldn't see anything, like it was the dead of night on a new moon. Suddenly, the palpable fear that was emitting from wherever Rocky was vanished, almost as if it had never been there in the first place. "Rocks?" I squeaked, frightened._

"_CeCe." _

_Rocky appeared in front of me, but my relief of seeing her only lasted for a moment before I _actually_ saw her. Her entire body was covered in huge yellowing bruises and long, jagged cuts. The sight repulsed me. It was the worst thing I could ever imagine, seeing my best friend like that. I couldn't even generate words._

"_This is your fault, CeCe," Rocky whispered. Her eyes were bottomless pits of nothing. She barely moved; she even spoke as if she were a zombie. My heart was pounding out of my chest with fear. This couldn't be real; this couldn't be happening. How was it my fault? What had I done?_

"_You did this," the Rocky-phantom repeated, her voice a malicious snarl. "You did this. You did this." The phrase was repeated over and over like a mantra until something invaded. Something that—_

I startled awake when my alarm clock went off, jumping into a sitting position and clenching my comforter to my chest. It was a dream. It was just a dream. Rocky wasn't really hurt; it was just my overactive imagination. And I knew because I'd be seeing her in an hour at school. And everything would be fine, and…

My train of thought broke off when I realized just how hysterical I was. It was just a little nightmare; there was no need to react the way I had. I supposed it was just because of the condition that Rocky had appeared to me in. Seeing her like that, even in a dream, made me shudder with resentment. Nobody could hurt Rocky that way, _no one_. If something like that had ever happened to her, I don't know what I'd do with myself. Probably blame myself even if I had nothing to do with it, that's what.

It was then that I realized just how much Rocky meant to me. It was more than a bond that friends, even best friends share. Maybe even more than sisters. But…would I be willing to admit that to myself? No…no, I don't like Rocky in that way; I'd already been through this.

But…would it be so horribly bad if I did? I mean, she already likes me. And I'm not so sure about my sexuality anymore…definitely not lesbian, but maybe bi. Maybe. And…and sometimes I get that fluttery feeling in my stomach when Rocky looks at me, and I think she's beautiful, and…

And that could wait. As strange of a notion as it seemed, I just wanted to get to school already. See Rocky, find out what happened to her yesterday. I didn't need to worry about any crush business that may accidentally come up.

* * *

School didn't go the way I had planned. I got there early, a whole fifteen minutes before the first bell, but I couldn't find Rocky anywhere even though I had searched all the way up until the bell. Nothing. It…it didn't matter. Rocky and I had the same first period, so I'd see her in there. If she was at school at all.

No, that was silly. Rocky wouldn't miss school for anything, not if she had anything to do with the matter. Her attendance record was too important to her to miss class. But even when I walked into Mr. Sanders' math class, I didn't see her. My stomach clenched a little with worry. Where could she possibly be? She wasn't _actually_ hurt, was she? Or sick?

I sat through math and history classes silently, distracted. I couldn't pay attention to my work (as if I would have in the first place) and I certainly wasn't in the mood to misbehave like I normally did. I just couldn't get Rocky out of my head.

I exited the history classroom when the lunch bell rang, my feet moving sluggishly slow. I didn't have any hope that I would see Rocky today, at least at school. Maybe I'd try to sneak into her apartment later.

I was still pondering this when I ran straight into Ty. I almost fell, but he caught my arm and kept me steady before I could. "Oh, Ty, I was hoping I'd see you!" I exclaimed. Maybe he could tell me about Rocky.

"Well, CeCe? What is it?" Ty asked, and I could hear the cold undertones in his voice. I was about to respond, asking why he was talking to me like that, when he continued speaking. "You know, CeCe, I thought I could trust you. How could you have told my dad about Rocky?"

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean? I came to ask you where she is; I haven't seen her all day, and…and she never got a hold of me yesterday after your dad came and…Ty, where _is_ Rocky?"

"You can't tell me you weren't the one to tell dad about her liking you," Ty said. "We're the only ones that know, and _I_ certainly didn't tell him."

I sighed in frustration; he was ignoring my question. "Ty, I swear, I did not tell your dad about her! I was with her since I left you yesterday! Just, please, _tell me where she is_."

Ty's gaze softened a little, and I could tell he was starting to believe me. Good, I'd need him on my side. For…you know…whatever reason. "She's at a school for teens who need to be 'cured' of homosexuality."

* * *

**Oh, I'm so sorry this took so long! I wrote an author's note to tell you guys that this was going to be on hiatus, but I guess I never updated the story with it :/ I felt bad because you had no warning of this thing dropping off the face of Fanfiction, so I wrote another chapter for you guys. But really, I have to do my junior paper and it's going to be taking up a lot of my time. But I'll do what I can for you guys :)**


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